99designs Bloghttps://99designs.ie/blog
Whether you're a designer or an entrepreneur, find design tips, inspiration, resources & business advice on The Creative Edge, a blog by 99designs.Tue, 26 Sep 2017 17:02:05 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.8.2You want to put that where??! The best, worst and weirdest logo placementshttps://99designs.ie/blog/tips/logo-placement/
https://99designs.ie/blog/tips/logo-placement/#respondTue, 26 Sep 2017 14:00:00 +0000https://blog.99cluster.com/blog/?p=162902There are lots of predictable places to put a logo: on a white t-shirt, a billboard or a ballpoint pen. But that isn’t going to get you any attention (unless the attention you want is your ill-fitting, logo shirt being used as a rag in houses around the nation). Getting creative (or even a little…

]]>There are lots of predictable places to put a logo: on a white t-shirt, a billboard or a ballpoint pen. But that isn’t going to get you any attention (unless the attention you want is your ill-fitting, logo shirt being used as a rag in houses around the nation).

Getting creative (or even a little weird) with your logo placement can creating a branding win. Unfortunately, that strategy can also blow up in your face.

Here are some great examples of weird logo placement, and why they’re fabulous (or fails).

You lucky dog…
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I’m not saying that any business can benefit from logo placement on an adorable dog. No, I take that back. I totally am. Your brand may have something to do with animals, but even if it doesn’t, your logo will look irresistible on someone’s best friend.

Do you run the risk of your logo ending up on Cujo? Maybe, but it’s worth it. Check out these guys.

When logo placement goes bad
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You found a great place for your logo, congratulations! Maybe inside an upscale shopping mall that gets tons of traffic, for example. Yet you made a fatal error: you didn’t think the logo placement all the way through.

This is something Turkish Airlines should have thought about… Via Buzzfeed.

How hard would it have been to either specify only the going up side of the escalator? Or make two versions and insist that the ad always be heading up? Due to lack of foresight, TA is now crashing into a shiny marble floor.

There are only two ways the Starbucks logo on this van can be seen: door open, and door closed. Guess which half of the equation did not get solved?

“No-brainers” still require a little thought from you. Think it through, each position and setting. Create usage guidelines for your logo so you can preempt more obvious problems. And if you’re planning to put your logo on anything, get a final confirmation look before the project moves forward.

You designed it to go there why?
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Next, a quick look at logos and a few ads that were specifically intended to be placed where they are—to horrible effect.

The taxi below makes some people want to run away. It makes others want to hang around in the backseat waaaay too long. This placement doesn’t do anything for the brand, because it draws your eyes away from the logo and toward other features in the ad.

It’s not a logo. . . But we had to include that second example of the same mysterious problem. If this were Hooters, then the placement would be ingenious. But it isn’t, on either point. Extra points deducted because this placement covers the entire vehicle. It’s not just an ad on the side. They could have moved these elements anywhere. They just didn’t.

The do’s of design

Seriously, if you are designing for a specific location, avoid screwing the whole thing up. I guess that’s the bottom line here. Get a second set of eyes on the final design to be sure you didn’t miss anything. If something looks weird, it probably is.

Unexpected logo placement
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Some unusual logo placements totally work, but for a limited list of businesses.

This classy logo on ice idea works for an upscale bar or restaurant, but not for anyone else. Via New York Times.

For example, the trend of branding ice with logos. Not only would this be ineffective for many businesses, it could be downright counterproductive.

Let’s say Citibank was sponsoring a big gala event. Should they brand the ice cubes with their logo? Maybe not, since the logo would instantly begin to melt away and be gone in minutes; given that their general value proposition is has to do with growth, progress, and protecting clients’ assets, this might not communicate what they want it to.

Well, the upside is that the ad naturally steams like a cup of coffee. The downside is that it steams because it’s over a sewer of human waste. Is this a success? Well, it probably made people remember it.

Avoid placements that are directly counter to your brand’s value proposition. And also avoid the sewer.

The human body: a mixed bag
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In some ways getting your brand on an actual person’s body could be a fabulous move. It certainly worked for Ernst & Young.

Just like it says, BuyMyFace will let you rent face space. Via Facebook

They paid the two guys behind BuyMyFace.com (now on Facebook, see below) to get video of themselves doing things like skydiving and go-karting with the E&Y logo on their faces. The two would post the videos on social media and their website and E&Y got the exposure they wanted.

If you don’t want to pay specific people to wear your logo on their faces, you can just create lots of temporary tattoos with your logo, distribute them, and hope for the best.

They say any exposure is good exposure, but they may not have seen this before they said that. Via Viralnova.

Of course you run the risk of a logo placement like this. Although this is, I believe, a real tattoo, used only to illustrate just how concerned you should probably be about your temporary logo tattoos being placed unfavorably.

But there are even riskier ways to place your logos on bodies.

For example, New Zealand clothing chain Superette altered benches so that people sitting on them in shorts and skirts would end up with their logo and message on their thighs. Depending on who sits down, though, that might or might not be the look you’re going for as a hip, daisy duke shorts and mini-skirt selling store.

Finally, there’s the old put-your-logo-on-women’s-butts thing. Juicy may have started it, but now it’s just a thing.

Make sure it’s your brand’s thing before you do this. KFC on butts sort of works, somehow, maybe as an ironic statement. However, not all brands are butt-friendly. If your business is insurance, financial advice, or tutoring services for kids, butt logo placement may not be a great choice.

Consider this

Logos on things like temporary tattoos can be really fun, especially for a less serious brand. But never forget, every temporary tattoo has the potential to become a “tramp stamp.”

Think it through very carefully before branding butts.

Keyword calamities
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You might think you’re covering all your bases if you sign up for logo placement with keyword parameters controlling where your logo shows up. Occasionally, this has unexpected yet hilarious results. From time to time, the results are just plain awful.

This AFLAC logo placement is, I think, in the “Bob Ross happy accident” category. It is delightful, unless you’re reading the article because you have a clinical fear of ducks watching you. If that’s the case, it sucks.

And oh dear, Competition Briquets. All you wanted was for your ads and logo to be placed near content about grilling.

The keys to keywords

Be very specific when providing keywords for platforms that will place your logo

Specify any keywords that should not be included

Be creative (but be smart)
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I hope you enjoyed our little journey into the Twilight Zone of logo placements. Even though they sometimes fail, it’s always exciting to see creative logo placement, especially when you never would have thought of them otherwise. There are only so many branded mousepads the world can handle, right? So why not aim for something totally new with your next logo placement?

What’s the weirdest place you’ve seen a logo? Let us know in the comments.

]]>https://99designs.ie/blog/tips/logo-placement/feed/0Branding matters: 6 branding mistakes that are holding you back from getting fundinghttps://99designs.ie/blog/business/branding-funding-mistakes/
https://99designs.ie/blog/business/branding-funding-mistakes/#respondMon, 25 Sep 2017 14:00:00 +0000https://blog.99cluster.com/blog/?p=163830If you’re a startup trying to land funding, there are a ton of factors that come into play when turning your dreams into reality. You need a compelling message, an awesome product or service, and you need to be willing and able to stand in front of a group of VCs and sell them on…

]]>If you’re a startup trying to land funding, there are a ton of factors that come into play when turning your dreams into reality. You need a compelling message, an awesome product or service, and you need to be willing and able to stand in front of a group of VCs and sell them on your company with a killer pitch deck.
Free pitch deck template, designed by pallabip

But even with the right message, product and presenting skills, there might be something else holding you back you probably never even considered: your branding.

Let’s take a look at some ways your logo and brand identity might be preventing you from getting the funding you need to take your business to the next level—and what you can do about it:

1. Your design is dated
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While good branding is about more than being on trend, having a sleek, modern design aesthetic built into your product can set you apart from competitors. By showing investors that you understand current trends and how to position your product in the marketplace, you’re giving them confidence in your ability to put their investment to work with a marketing plan that will spend your newfound budget efficiently.

Most startups nowadays have access to the same tools, networks, freelancers, etc… needed to launch a business. This means getting a company off the ground is cheaper and faster than ever before. But it also means there’s little you can do to stop your competitors from building an almost identical product to yours. The implication? Often the startup with the best branding wins.

Take Wework. Product wise, it’s very similar to a company called Regus, but WeWork clearly put more stock into building a brand and website with a clean, modern look. A better design aesthetic reflects a more modern approach across the entire business, making it easier for your VC to say “where do I sign?”

On the flip side, it’s possible to scare off investors by leaning too heavily on a trendy logo and flashy pitch deck without the product and balance sheet to back it up. Trust us, VCs can spot a company that’s “all sizzle, no steak” faster than you can say “tofurky.”

2. … or sloppy
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Look, we’re going to get really real with you here: your logo usually isn’t the end-all-be-all determining factor in whether or not you’ll get funding. But, if you don’t give your branding the attention it deserves, it will certainly raise red flags with investors.

Think about it from a VCs perspective; if you lack the good judgment to build your brand on the level of design your customers expect and deserve… what else are you lacking?

Accoring to Cyril Ebersweiler, founder and MD at HAX Accelerator, “Bad branding can reveal some level of sloppiness. When you are a startup going through fundraising, the last thing you want the other side of the table to think is whether or not you even considered to cover your basics.”

Solution: invest in design

Part of being a successful entrepreneur is about knowing when to delegate. If you don’t have a background in design, it’s a good idea to tap an expert for help with your brand identity.

As Joe Saijo, Managing Director at Recruit Strategic Partners* puts it, “Brand matters. Getting people to easily understand the value of a product can be challenging–that’s where great branding and design come in.”

3. Your brand is inconsistent
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Do you want to know why fast food companies, like McDonald’s and In-N-Out Burger, do so well? It’s not their equally delicious and unhealthy menu of artery-clogging goods (although I’m sure that doesn’t hurt).

It’s consistency.

In-N-Out Burger knows consistency is key

You know when you walk into a McDonald’s, whether you’re in Los Angeles, CA or Topeka, KS, your french fries and Big Mac are going to taste the same. And that’s what keeps you coming back for more.

It’s the same concept with your brand identity. When customers experience your brand, they expect the same experience wherever it happens—whether it’s on a website, social media, or in person.

If you’re one brand on Facebook but a completely different brand in your advertisements or on your website (think colors, fonts, and brand voice), people are going to be a) confused, b) put-off, and c) wary of trusting you. When your brand lacks consistency, it shows you don’t have the attention span to pick a brand direction and stick to it.

Not exactly a situation VCs want to pour money into.

For Evan Luthra, serial entrepreneur and CEO of El Group International, inconsistent branding is a deal killer. “It’s very important that you’re sending the same message everywhere… we have so many different online profiles and so many platforms, it’s very important that it looks the same everywhere you go. You can’t have a black and white design [on social media] and then on your website it’s red and blue… I get a thousand startup pitches a week, and when I realize they don’t have any branding ethics… that turns off a lot of investors. I would say, take a step back, focus on your branding. That can be the difference between closing a check and not closing a check.”

Solution: consistency, consistency, consistency

The solution, of course, is to give the people what they want: be consistent. If you’re a fun-loving, energetic brand, be that brand across all platforms. If you’re more serious and corporate, that’s all good—don’t alter your branding because you think you need to speak exclusively in emoji to hang on social media. The more consistent you are, the more trustworthy you’ll be to customers—and the more likely you’ll be to get funding.

According to Simon Chuter, Sales and Marketing Innovation Advisor at Sussex Innovation, the key to ensuring brand consistency is establishing brand guidelines that are adaptable. “You can create the most beautiful brand, but if the guidelines you come up with have only been designed to fit one application, you’ll soon need to design something for another purpose, and that’s where inconsistencies start to creep in.”

4. You don’t know what you stand for
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When you pitch investors, you’re asking them to give you a huge chunk of money because they believe in you and your potential. But if you have no idea what you stand for, how can you expect them to stand behind you—and cough up a bunch of cash to boot?

For Expressive AI, as soon as they answered the “what do we stand for” question, doors started to open. After trying (and failing) to break through with a name and logo that they didn’t feel great about, co-founders Angela Field, Jared Peters and Chris Shaw decided to make a change.

“I think the hardest thing for us was getting consensus. We had had many conversations over the prior year about our brand but nothing really grabbed all of us. It was the combination of luck, having a strong reason to make decision quickly, and having a really strong understanding of our company and what makes us unique. A year prior we were playing with things that were more wonky, technical, or gimmicky in retrospect. “

Expressive AI’s new website and logo

Sure enough, as soon as they found a brand identity that clicked, other things started clicking too. They presented at Venture Beat and within days they were accepted into the Boost VC accelerator and got their first round of funding.

How’s that for a Cinderella story?

Solution: get clear on who you are as a company

Before you think about establishing your brand identity or asking VCs for funding, you need to get clear on who you are as a company: your mission, what you stand for and what you want to accomplish. Without that information, you’re asking investors to believe in something you haven’t defined yet—and that’s a recipe for disaster.

For Timan Rebel, Co-Founder of NEXT Amsterdam, it’s important that founders focus on doing these things in the right order. If you start working on your branding before you know what you’re all about, you risk burning a lot of time and money. “We believe that you should first validate your ideas and find a working and repeatable business model. Only when you have validated that your solution actually solves the customers problem and adds value, it’s time to start looking at brand identify. Before that, your solution is likely to change and it would be wasteful to spent a lot of time and energy on your brand identity.”

5. Your pitch deck doesn’t tell the right story
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Your pitch deck plays a huge role in whether you walk out of your VC meeting with a big, fact, check… or a “thanks, but no thanks.”

When it comes down to it, your pitch deck is, essentially, just another part of your brand identity—the part responsible for proving your value. But if it doesn’t tell the right story—the story that convinces your VCs that you’re a slam dunk investment—you’re going to walk out of that meeting empty-handed.

We asked Andrew Braccia*, a partner at Accel for his perspective on the importance of branding to a VC. To him, presentation can be everything. “ A well-designed presentation helps a lot with first impressions when meeting with new companies, it allows me to quickly assess the company’s brand position and its importance.”

Solution: show, don’t tell

Use your numbers and data to paint a picture of the state of your company, and present it in a visual way that’s easy for your investors to understand. If you’re selling a product, include photos and videos of your prototypes so your VCs can get a real understanding of the product and how it works. If you’ve designed an app, include plenty of screenshots that show exactly how users will experience your app.

Telling your VCs they should invest with you isn’t enough. You have to show them—and your pitch deck is the place to do it.

6. You’re too married to your first idea
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Look, we get it: You’ve done the hard work, you’ve lived and breathed your product for months, sometimes years. You know your brand better than anyone, so why should you listen to feedback from someone who is just seeing it for the first time?

We chatted with Kaushik Sen, COO of Spaceship, an Australian investment platform, about their “placeholder” logo and the road to funding. For Kaushik, it’s all about inspiring confidence.

“Our previous logo was just a placeholder designed by someone in the team (not a designer) and we told people that. Our early investors absolutely would’ve hesitated had we been married to our old logo…”

After getting their first round of funding, Kaushik and his team went to 99designs to redesign their logo and brand identity.

“Since our first round in July 2016, Spaceship has successfully raised $19.5m from some of the best VCs in the world. Every presentation and pitch deck has carried our [new] logo. We have received countless compliments about our strong brand from both customers and investors. [A strong] brand can give investors confidence that your team has the ability to make your product appealing to customers.”

Solution: be open to feedback

Most of the time, investors know solid branding and design when they see it (or at the very least they know when it’s not right). By showing them you’re open to feedback on your branding, you’re showing them you’ll be eager to take criticism as feedback and use it to improve on other aspects of your business, which is a huge predictor of success. Sure there’s value in sticking to your guns, but if your investors say your branding needs work, chances are, they’re right.

At Sussex innovation, providing feedback on visual identity and branding is viewed as an opportunity for them to add value. “A lot of our members are very smart individuals with some kind of technical expertise, and we see our role as helping them develop business confidence around that expertise. So… we’d take the view that poor visual identity is an opportunity for our team to add value. As long as the founder recognizes that it’s an area that needs work, of course – it’s trickier when they won’t admit there’s a problem,” says Chuter.

Don’t let your brand identity hold you back
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There are already plenty of hurdles on the way to getting funding, so don’t create any more for yourself and your business. Now that you know how to use your brand identity to your advantage—and not let it hold you back from getting funding—it’s time to get out there and get pitching!

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]]>https://99designs.ie/blog/business/branding-funding-mistakes/feed/0Invoicing for freelancers: how to send, receive and manage your invoiceshttps://99designs.ie/blog/business/invoicing-for-freelancers/
https://99designs.ie/blog/business/invoicing-for-freelancers/#respondFri, 22 Sep 2017 14:30:00 +0000https://blog.99cluster.com/blog/?p=164281As a freelancer, you have to stay caught up with important things outside of marketing your talent. For example, freelancers have to adeptly manage projects, meet deadlines and communicate seamlessly across virtual teams. But of all these obligations, the highest priority must always be to maintain a positive cash flow. It’s this cash flow that…

It’s this cash flow that gets you through tough economic cycles. You’re already worried about income fluctuations from month to month. A lack of payments can mean the difference between paying your bills and not covering them on time. Not being paid can also impact how you save money for investments, taxes and retirement.

While you must work on marketing on a daily basis for steady work flow as a freelancer, you must also perfect your invoicing system to increase and speed cash flow. Not sure where to start? Here’s how to invoice like a pro.

Invoicing for freelancers
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Here are actionable tips on how to send, receive, and manage your freelance invoice process:

Sending Invoices

Invoicing systems that involve a word processing program, printer, envelope and a stamp are archaic. Using one could delay payment for days, weeks or even longer. It is also an inefficient use of your time and money. There is also a greater risk that mistakes will be made or the invoice will be lost in the shuffle.

Instead, get an online invoicing system for freelance invoices. There are multiple online invoicing tools and platforms available that deliver efficiency, branding opportunities, and convenience for your clients.

Create a formatted invoice using one of the available invoice templates. Make sure that it matches your brand, including colors, and provides a way to upload your logo for a more professional look.

Number every invoice. This is a good way for both you and your clients to track invoices that are paid and outstanding.

Determine if you need to change the currency, taxation, and language on the invoices to accommodate any international clients. Keep in mind to check on the self employment tax rates for each State our Country

Detail all of the services you performed. The more information you can provide, such as date, time, and project work, the easier it is for the client to agree with the invoice amount rather than just putting a total on the bottom.

Describe your payment acceptance methods and terms of payment, including due date and any types of fees or discounts associated with payment timing.

Always include a note of appreciation for the work and relationship. Be sure to change these up each month to provide that personal touch. Clients want to know that you value them.

Sending your invoice within an email is one of the most popular methods. This method includes a button within the email correspondence that the client can click to review and pay the invoice.

You can get paid immediately with this invoice receipt method because it is something your client can do in a matter of minutes. Also, consider accommodating their preference to receive invoices via text message or through a link that is sent through an instant messenger.

Be sure to ask each of your clients how they prefer to receive your invoice. Then, keep track of that so you can deliver it that way each month. Write this preference tracking information down. When you have a large client list it can become confusing (seriously, some clients request unusual invoicing practices).

If your clients receive regular invoices for the same amount because you are on a retainer, then use the recurring invoice function. It saves additional time and “trains” your clients to expect their invoice on the same day each month.

Managing Invoices

While you wish you could just automate the entire process of invoicing for your freelance business, the reality is that you still have to manage the process. This is where your online invoicing system can also help. Here are some management tips to remember to stay on top of your invoices:

Update any changes to client information. This includes adding any new people that are to be included on the invoice. Staying current on this information will ensure that your invoice gets to the right people so that payment is not delayed.

Set up automatic reminders for outstanding invoices to encourage payment if a certain amount of days have passed.

Develop an automated thank you email when a client makes a payment. If you prefer, you may want to send your acknowledgment via email or any instant messaging system you use like Slack.

Establish a system for short-term or long-term projects. With this system, also add an accompanying agreement form for your client.

Use the numbering system to help a client find their invoice or to call up so you can answer a question or concern they have about it.

Track your cash flow by using available reporting capabilities to see how much you have received, what is still outstanding, and your overall revenue totals by month, quarter, and year. It’s important to follow these amounts because you can compare your productivity against your need or availability for more work.

Weigh your options of integrating more payment acceptance methods into your invoicing system. The more payment options you offer, the greater your chances of attracting more clients. Not every client wants to pay the same way, so be sure to include a payment processing partner that works with your online invoicing system.Find a partner that can offer debit and credit cards, ACH/e-checks, and payments via email like found with the peer-to-peer payment tools. Maybe you are even willing to accept cryptocurrency if your clients seem to like that alternative payment method.

Work and Cash Flow

Be sure to include your invoicing and payment methods in your marketing approaches. You can use this updated process as leverage to differentiate yourself from other freelancers. As a freelancer, you may also want to mention that you can teach your new client about how to use this payment system.

If your new client is still using the old-fashioned billing and payment systems, you can accommodate them with these time saving hacks. But, try to switch them to the other system as quickly as possible for both of your benefit. Progressive clients may pick you over other freelancers to fit their updated invoicing and payments system.

]]>https://99designs.ie/blog/business/invoicing-for-freelancers/feed/0Vote for September’s Top 9 at 99https://99designs.ie/blog/inside-99designs/best-vintage-retro-design-2017/
https://99designs.ie/blog/inside-99designs/best-vintage-retro-design-2017/#commentsThu, 21 Sep 2017 18:50:16 +0000https://blog.99cluster.com/blog/?p=164371We’re turning back the clock this month with nine of the best vintage and retro designs. Our designers have gone positively groovy with work inspired by yesteryear. September’s Top 9 nominees include a vintage zombie T-shirt, a radical 80s dinosaur mascot, a retro extraterrestrial band logo and more! Check them out and vote for your…

]]>We’re turning back the clock this month with nine of the best vintage and retro designs. Our designers have gone positively groovy with work inspired by yesteryear. September’s Top 9 nominees include a vintage zombie T-shirt, a radical 80s dinosaur mascot, a retro extraterrestrial band logo and more!

Best of luck to this month’s nominees!

]]>https://99designs.ie/blog/inside-99designs/best-vintage-retro-design-2017/feed/16Mobile app promotion: 10 ingeniously creative ideashttps://99designs.ie/blog/tips/mobile-app-promotion/
https://99designs.ie/blog/tips/mobile-app-promotion/#respondTue, 19 Sep 2017 15:00:00 +0000https://blog.99cluster.com/blog/?p=163463Look around. Who isn’t in love with their little magical glowing rectangles these days? The mobile app market has become a significant part of our lives, and the driving force behind many major businesses now comes through mobile app technology. Up against an ocean of competition, it’s imperative that you find creative ways of mobile…

]]>Look around. Who isn’t in love with their little magical glowing rectangles these days?
Be creative and keep an eye on your users. They’ll help drive your app. Via 99designs

The mobile app market has become a significant part of our lives, and the driving force behind many major businesses now comes through mobile app technology. Up against an ocean of competition, it’s imperative that you find creative ways of mobile app promotion to make your app stand out.

Sure, you may not have an unlimited bank account to work with. And it’s challenging for young startups to get ahead of well-established companies in the app world. But there are still ways you can get ahead with your new mobile app.

Get started with mobile app promotion
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1. Write a clear and creative description

The headline and description of your app will be the first things many consumers see. Make it catchy and informative. What is the clearest message you can send to potential users that describes your app?

Take a look at these great examples of headlines. They’re accurate and include keywords that emphasize the high quality service the app is able to provide.

Uber: “Get a reliable ride in minutes with the Uber app—no reservations or waiting in taxi lines”

Yelp: “Whether you’re looking for a pizzeria that just opened or a coffee shop nearby, Yelp is your local guide to finding the perfect place to eat, shop, drink, relax and play”

Instagram: “Instagram is a simple way to capture and share the world’s moments. Follow your friends and family to see what they’re up to, and discover accounts from all over the world that are sharing things you love”

DoorDash: “Food delivery to your door from the widest selection of restaurants near you”

However you want to word your headline and description, take note from these successful apps. Make sure you clearly show the aim of your app and stay relevant to your target audience.

2. Launch a beta

A beta version of your app will allow your followers to experiment with your new app and provide valuable feedback. Via Google.

We all like to try on clothes before we buy them, right? Creating a beta allows your followers to sample your new app before it becomes fully available.

Before you launch, make your Instagram and Facebook pages attract the audience you’re looking for so your beta is geared towards the right people.

Betas allow actual users to experiment with your app, which will greatly increase your exposure. Google previously released a beta version of its Chrome browser, allowing them to understand the general vibe towards its updates and provided them with priceless feedback. Creating your own beta will allow you to do the same.

3. Get reviewed

People are constantly looking for new ideas and tips (that’s why you’re reading!). Get your app on popular blogs or app review sites like 148apps and AppAdvice.

AppAdvice is great for getting your app out there and grabbing some reviews. Via AppAdvice

Getting your app on these sites will increase your exposure and give you invaluable feedback about what people love (or don’t) about your app. Don’t forget: many people are willing to respond to your app through reviews.

4. Look for app awards and prizes

The Webby Awards have many different award categories for mobile apps. Via Webby Awards

Good news! There are organizations out there that award apps for their ingenuity, functionality and design. Do some research, and you can apply for the ones that fit your app. A couple of good examples are The Stevie Awards or The Webby Awards.

Trust us: your app will turn a lot more heads if it has a stream of awards behind it!

Many mobile apps have taken off thanks to winning such awards. Dashlane, a relatively new app, recently won a Webby Award for “Best Services and Utilities App.” Apps nominated for a Webby Award in 2017 include Airbnb, Spotify, HBO Now and Pokemon Go.

If you have an awesome idea, enter and see how many other people think it’s awesome, too!

5. Create giveaway opportunities

Who doesn’t love free stuff?

People love giveaways and earning points towards things they like. A points system is a great method of mobile app promotion because your app generates and maintains interest as it continues to grow.

A points system is a great way to give your customers that winning feeling. Via Expedia.

Think Expedia for example. They offer customers points based on their purchases, which can then be used for future purchases. That’s a great way to keep your consumers, well, consuming!

Other great online sites such as Rafflecopter, Gleam, and Promosimple offer easy avenues for creating giveaway opportunities for your followers. Intelligently created giveaways will offer your users great incentives to spark their interest, and keep them coming back for more.

6. Keep an eye on your stats

This one seems fairly obvious, but it’s very easy to overlook certain statistics regarding your app.

Adjust is a great way to keep you in the know on how you are doing, and to help identify the areas you need to focus on promoting and improving.

How many downloads are you getting versus how many active users you have? What are the most popular features of your app?

These are questions that help you understand where you are succeeding, and what still needs polishing.

Programs like AppAnnie and Adjust allow you to track specific statistics like which ads brought users to your app or which users spend the most and why. Keeping track of these statistics can be the difference between mediocrity and success.

7. Become a LinkedIn guru

LinkedIn is perhaps the best networking tool available to a young business, and it’s a great way to get your new content out there. Many top corporations regularly share interesting content and create opportunities for discussion with like-minded businesses and followers.

Networking effectively using LinkedIn will allow you to share content and create discussions with followers and like minded people. Via LinkedIn.

Great mobile app promotion starts with active discussions that are relevant to your field. Leave comments and tags on interesting stories and features, sharing your own content when relevant. But be resourceful and remember not to drown the service with marketing for your app.

8. Create app cards

Be like Starbucks. Include app cards with free downloads in local coffee shops. Via Starbucks.

You may have noticed small business cards in coffee shops and bars featuring “Song of the Week” or “Download of the Month.” These are app cards, and they’re a great way for you to get your new app on display to the masses.

Negotiate with local businesses so you can leave your app cards in their establishments. This easy mobile app promotion makes you readily accessible to a wider audience.

You can also include free trials or bonuses exclusive to a card picked up in a particular establishment. In past years, Starbucks collaborated with Apple to include app cards with free downloads in their coffee shops.

Who doesn’t love a cup of coffee in the morning? Get your cards into local businesses and watch the downloads increase.

9. Become a social media hustler

Pinterest is a great tool for sharing interesting content. Make sure to display your apps logo and description when you share! Via Pinterest

Don’t underestimate the power of social media! Here are some pretty awesome ways you can use social media to get your head above the competition:

Facebook and Instagram ads: Those ads that come up all the time on our Facebook and Instagram feeds? Those are deliberately placed ad campaigns. You can use these to catch people’s eye as they feed their social media addictions.

Facebook Live: One of the newest and most engaging features of Facebook is going Live. Going live with your followers will allow you to be present with them and personally answer any questions they have.

Pinterest: Share interesting content, and be sure to include your logo, headline, and images with your pins.

Companies that are active on social media are like people in a crowd with a loud voice! Following the steps above will help you to stand out over your less involved competitors.

10. Take care of your critics

This is arguably the most important tip for promoting your mobile app, and one of the simplest.

Many businesses fail to respond appropriately to negative criticism. None of us enjoy receiving negative comments about ourselves or our business, but empathizing and relating to your critics will allow you to better understand where you’re going wrong.

We have already mentioned review services such as 148Apps and AppAdvice. Keep an eye on your less satisfied reviews and attempt to respond to each piece of criticism to ensure doubters that you’ll correct any issues. You’ll create a personable experience and build a stronger rapport with your users, while always providing you with instructions on how to do better.

Be a little different. We dare you.
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You can’t eliminate the competition from a crowded world of mobile apps, but differentiating yourself from the competition can = success. Remember, the customer is everything. Gathering a strong following with the above tips will be key to the growth of your new mobile app.

Be passionate, be creative, and begin your journey towards promoting the most awesome new mobile app the world has ever seen.

One more method of mobile app promotion? Have an awesome app icon design. Our designers can create a great one for you!

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This article was written by Chris Paish.

Chris is an Assistant Head Tennis Professional at Woodbridge Tennis Club in Irvine, CA. In his spare time, he enjoys playing soccer and golf, and loves hiking and camping with his wife and two dogs.

]]>https://99designs.ie/blog/tips/mobile-app-promotion/feed/018 triangle logos that get to the pointhttps://99designs.ie/blog/creative-inspiration/triangle-logos/
https://99designs.ie/blog/creative-inspiration/triangle-logos/#respondFri, 15 Sep 2017 16:00:00 +0000https://blog.99cluster.com/blog/?p=162896Triangle logos separate themselves from round logos through the presence of sharp corners and from square logos with their increased stability. Consider, for example, how folding tables often include triangular supports or how easels lean against triangular legs—it’s a dependable shape! These unique qualities allow triangular logos to communicate values like trustworthiness, power or plain…

]]>Triangle logos separate themselves from round logos through the presence of sharp corners and from square logos with their increased stability. Consider, for example, how folding tables often include triangular supports or how easels lean against triangular legs—it’s a dependable shape!

These unique qualities allow triangular logos to communicate values like trustworthiness, power or plain confidence in a way that other logo shapes can’t. If any of these sound like values that relate to your business, you’re in the right place. We’ve rounded up some awesome triangle logos for your inspiration.

Colorful and calm triangle logos
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The geometric strength that triangles have allows them to communicate a sense of calmness or security. This is especially true when triangles are paired with saturated, healing or joyful colors. If your business relates to fields such as finance, management, behavior or any field which aims to communicate safety, start here for design inspiration.

Hip line work
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Compared to circles and squares, triangles are one of the lesser-used shapes in logo design—which isn’t necessarily a bad thing! Their rarity can give them a hip, rebellious or punk appearance. If your business is a little more on the cool side, triangles are great for embellishment with hip line work.

Whether abstract and symmetrical, these embellishments can create mesmerizing geometry, or even something illustrative such as an eye in the center (a reference to the illuminati, or secret knowledge). Ultimately, this style of design can give a hip twist to any business, but especially record labels, custom motorcycle shops or jewelry shops.

Illustrated and whimsical triangles
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Thanks to myths such as the Bermuda Triangle, triangles can be portrayed in a way that feels mysterious or even mythological. The examples above succeed in creating that atmosphere by illustrating a bleeding triangle or creating an octopus that hints at the legendary Kraken. This style of design would work great for businesses that have a story behind the brand!

Sophisticated geometry
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Triangles draw the eye to three sharp points. This allows them to portray a sense of precision, accuracy or even sophistication. Some ways to bring these qualities out in a triangular logo is to render it in shiny gold, or incorporate it into a sleek pattern using minimalist geometry. This style of logo design is great for businesses that create innovative technology, handle document management or simply want show that they are focused, mature brand.

]]>https://99designs.ie/blog/creative-inspiration/triangle-logos/feed/0Branding colors: everything you need to choose your brand’s perfect pigmentshttps://99designs.ie/blog/tips/branding-colors/
https://99designs.ie/blog/tips/branding-colors/#respondWed, 13 Sep 2017 14:30:00 +0000https://blog.99cluster.com/blog/?p=162897Chase. Citibank. Barclay’s. Bank of America. All banks. All use blue for one of their dominant branding colors. Even other financial institutions like Prudential and Merrill Lynch use blue. Obviously it’s more than a coincidence that these money-related companies all chose blue for their brand identity. So what do they all know that you don’t?…

]]>Chase. Citibank. Barclay’s. Bank of America. All banks. All use blue for one of their dominant branding colors. Even other financial institutions like Prudential and Merrill Lynch use blue. Obviously it’s more than a coincidence that these money-related companies all chose blue for their brand identity. So what do they all know that you don’t?
According to this Indian Express article, consumers view brands that use blue as more eco-friendly than other colors, even green. The question our articles answer is, Why?

The short answers is they know how to combine color theory with business. When building a brand—just like when building a house or furniture—you need to understand how to use all the tools at your disposal, and that’s just what we’re going to discuss today.

In this article, we’ll run through everything you need to know about branding colors. We’ll touch on concepts from artistic disciplines—like color theory and art history—and merge them with the best practices for branding, marketing and what a company needs to survive in today’s business landscape. But first things first, you need to understand just why branding colors matter so much.

Why branding colors matter
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“Colors, like features, follow the changes of the emotions.” -Pablo Picasso

What do you think of when you hear the word “love?” Whether positive or negative, it mostly likely conjures a stronger emotional response than when you hear a phrase like “bike rack.”

Emotions are powerful and (whether we like it or not) drive our decision making. As a brand, you want to cultivate a strong emotional connection with your customers. The problem is you can’t tell your company’s entire life story in a logo or storefront—but branding colors provide a shortcut straight to your clientele’s hearts.

One of the most famous color theorists, Faber Birren, wrote extensively on the link between colors and our emotional state, particularly in his book Color Psychology and Color Theory. Just like the words “love” and “bike rack” elicit different emotions, colors like red and blue both create different human responses as well. Even more interesting, the same colors tend to provoke similar responses in different people; in other words, yellow evokes similar feelings in people from Montana to Timbuktu. This extends even to shades of individual colors, so deep dark blue and light sky blue will also have different effects.

Color theory is intrinsically tied to mankind’s history, as you can see from the page in an 1826 manuscript by Charles Hayter.

Color theory goes a lot deeper than “pink is a pretty color.” Psychologists link it to the very evolution of humans; connections with certain colors developed after years of associating them with particular objects. A blood red, for example, puts people on alert for danger nearby; the browns of dirt and rotten food tend to be unappetizing.

This isn’t always accurate—after all, farmers (and chocolate lovers) might love the color brown, and let’s not forget humans evolved to see the color blue only in recent millennia—but when considering millions of years of biological conditioning, it’s easy to see how affiliations to colors goes beyond mere preference… something humanity has known for quite some time now.

Americans work hard for their green, but do Europeans work hard for their blue?

And let’s not forget the cultural associations. A clear example is the way Americans associate green with money, because the currency we use everyday is green. People from other countries wouldn’t necessarily understand the phrase “spending greens”; a company “going green,” however, would resonate with almost everyone.

Even the most cold-hearted business-person can’t ignore the science between the psychological effects of branding colors. With mountains of evidence, it’s not a question of do brand colors work?, but how do I make brand colors work for me?

Application of branding colors
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According to neuroscientist Antonio Damasio, how consumers feel about a brand has more pull than what they think about a brand. Pair that with the fact that we know certain colors evoke certain emotions and voila: your brand colors have the ability to impact your sales or performance even more than the products you offer.

Moreover, repetition of the same color can strengthen brand awareness. When was the last time you saw a Coke can that wasn’t red or a Twitter bird that wasn’t sky blue? (Certainly the marketing world learned its lesson from Heinz’s tragic foray into purple ketchup.) Given enough exposure, colors become part of a brand, so you want to encourage this association by using your brand colors consistently.

Just for the sake of organization, here are the most common areas you’ll be using your branding colors:

logo

website

storefront

in-store design

staff uniforms

advertisements

Best Buy chooses a smart color scheme of a dominant blue and passive yellow, a complementary pair as we explain below. Blue carpets, blue walls, blue shirts for employees — one glance at this picture and you know you’re not in RadioShack.

By using the same colors in all your business ventures, you strengthen your brand’s association with those colors, and by extension strengthen brand awareness as a whole.

What this all amounts to, at least for branding, is that you must choose your branding colors carefully as they’ll have a direct influence on your brand identity. Pink may be your personal favorite color, but it might be the worst for your business goals. But before you even get into which colors you want to represent you, first you must decide your ideal brand personality.

How to determine your brand identity
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Red has done wonders for Target, who want their brand personality to be energetic, youthful and loud. But red wouldn’t work for a company like Casper mattresses, who cultivate a brand personality that’s calm and relaxed, denoting a good night’s sleep.

Choosing your branding colors is easy if you know what you’re trying to communicate. One of the earliest steps in building a brand is determining your brand personality. Essentially, you want to think of your company like a person: who are they? What’s important to them?

Once you established what your brand personality goals are, how do you determine which colors will work best? It starts with first learning the emotional associations of each colors.

Emotional associations of each color
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We’ve spoken enough about the abstracts for brandings colors — let’s dive into the hard facts (or at least some guidelines). Here’s a quick cheat sheet for color meanings:

When it comes to handing over all your money to someone, trust is paramount. That’s why there’s so much blue on the website for Chase Bank, and other financial institutions.

If you’re going for a single-color brand, the hard part is already over. But for most of you, you’ll want a more involved color scheme with a variety of colors. As if choosing one color wasn’t hard enough, now you have to choose multiple colors and make sure they combine in the way you want.

Formula for building a brand color scheme
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Obviously, there’s no one right way to pick your branding color scheme. When dealing with abstracts like brand identity, it’s difficult and unwise to ascribe hard and fast rules. That said, the process can be daunting and confusing, so a little guidance is helpful. Here, we’re going to explain our process for building a color scheme that you can use more as a framework, and less as step-by-step instructions.

1. Plan on choosing 3 colors

Your base, accent and a neutral. Brand color schemes can have between 1-4 colors depending on the type (see below), but even monochrome schemes will require some variation in hues for different purposes.

2. Choose your base

Of all your brand’s personality traits, which one is most important? Your base color should reflect not only your brand personality’s most dominant trait, but also appeal to the target audience you’re trying to reach. You’ll choose the remaining colors based on how well they match with this one.

3. Choose your accent

Your accent will be the color you use the most after your base color. This is a bit trickier than choosing your base color because their are more restrictions: aside from matching a brand personality trait, your accent color must also pair visually with your base color, not to mention appease your audience.

4. Choosing your neutral

Your neutral color will most likely be a background color, something chosen to avoid attention. Typically these are different hues of gray, but beige, whites and off-whites work, too. Black is also an option, but be careful; it tends to dominate any color scheme it’s a part of.

Classic Coors is an affordable bear that appeals to a more mature, masculine customer. They use a dark blue to indicate maturity, and a golden brown that is between rugged, masculine brown and affordable yellow.

Throughout the process of choosing your branding colors, you have to keep in mind the end goal: what kind of color scheme are you using? Typically, brands use one of these common brand color schemes:

When choosing branding colors, the color wheel is one of your greatest aids. The locations of colors to one another on the wheel.

Monochromatic — When you have one personality trait that you want to focus in on, a monochrome scheme will emphasis the meaning of that one brand color. While great for minimalist brands, the challenge here is differentiating the hues enough that your sight doesn’t become visually stunted.

Analogous — Colors next to each other on the color wheel have harmonious relations, since adjacent colors usually have similar emotional connotations. Analogous schemes are safe bets, but as such not the best for standing out or drawing attention.

Complementary — Color complements — or opposites — are colors directly across from one another on the color wheels. Because they’re opposites, they bring out the best in each other when paired; you see complementary colors a lot in sports teams. Complementary colors are great for dynamic, stimulating visuals, but be careful of copycatting another brand since they’re so popular.

Triadic — A stable branding color scheme, triadic colors draw in equal parts for three different sections of the color wheel. Triadic schemes are stable like analogous themes, but offer a more stimulating variety like complementary schemes. The hardest part is getting the three colors to coincide with the traits of your brand identity.

How your branding colors combine will come up again and again in many different aspects of your business. Your brand color scheme determines the look of your website, logo, store design, advertisements, etc., and even trickles down into minor appearances like your social media account. So choose them all carefully.

Know when to color outside the lines
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Like we said above, there are no concrete rules for choosing your branding colors. Treat this article more as a rough guideline—an educational resource to help you make informed decisions. But above all, don’t neglect your gut instincts. The main consideration of colors is their emotional connection, so don’t neglect your own feelings when deciding your brand colors.

Need some help deciding on your branding colors? Let one of our designers create a fantastic brand guide for you!

]]>https://99designs.ie/blog/tips/branding-colors/feed/0How to brand yourself on social media (in 4 simple steps)https://99designs.ie/blog/tips/social-media-branding/
https://99designs.ie/blog/tips/social-media-branding/#respondTue, 12 Sep 2017 21:27:22 +0000https://blog.99cluster.com/blog/?p=163462If you’re launching a business or project, personal or professional, there’s no avoiding your social media branding. Social media is the place to be as a brand. Pretty much everyone (including your mom, your grandma and your great aunt Joanie) spends half of their waking hours checking their various social media platforms. And since the…

]]>If you’re launching a business or project, personal or professional, there’s no avoiding your social media branding.

Social media is the place to be as a brand. Pretty much everyone (including your mom, your grandma and your great aunt Joanie) spends half of their waking hours checking their various social media platforms. And since the golden rule of marketing is “get people where they already are,” social media provides you with an A+ opportunity to connect with your audience, deliver your messaging and convert that audience into customers.

But you can’t just throw up a few social media profiles and expect business to start rolling in (if only it were that easy!). Just like you need a solid branding strategy for your business, if you want to be a social media success story, you need to brand yourself there, too.

Social media branding allows you to break through the clutter (and there’s a lot) so you’ll be easily recognizable to your target audience and ultimately drive more business, leads and sales.

But how, exactly, do you do that?

1. Keep your branding consistent across platforms
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The most important element of social media branding? Consistency, consistency, consistency.

If your website has one brand style (specific colors, fonts, and product images), but your Facebook has a completely different look and feel… Which is totally different from your Twitter… And your Instagram and Pinterest… And your Snapchat, too…

Well, you get the idea.

Inconsistent branding is confusing. Your audience expects to experience your brand in the same way, no matter where they’re experiencing it. Having an all-over-the-place brand on social media hurts your overall branding, your brand recognition, your engagement… And in the end, it hurts your sales.

When you’re creating your social media profiles, your brand DNA needs to be infused on each one. Got a brand color palette? Perfect. Use those colors on your profile. Have a hero image that people associate with your brand? Great. Use it as a Facebook or Twitter cover photo. Got a logo? Sweet (and if not, it’s time to get one designed!). Use it as your profile picture so you’re instantly recognizable to your audience.

Jamba Juice’s website.

Just take a look at Jamba Juice. The company (which, if you don’t know, serves delicious fruit-based juices and smoothies at malls and stand-alone shops) does an awesome job of carrying their branding from their website to their social media profiles.

Notice how Jamba Juice uses their branding elements—including their color palette (which is inspired by the tropical fruits in their beverages), brand images and fonts—on both Facebook and Twitter.

Jamba also uses their logo as a profile picture, which ensures that even if audience members miss the glaring similarities between their website and their social media profiles, there’s no mistaking which brand they’re interacting with.

If you think only large brands need to keep their branding consistent across social media platforms, take a look at Blue Star Donuts, an artisanal donut shop based in Portland, Oregon.

Blue Star places a heavy focus on creating high-quality donuts using the best ingredients. In fact, their tagline is “Quality over Quantity.” That’s why it makes total sense that their social media branding emphasizes food.

That branding has done them well. Blue Star has a rabid social media following—over 17K Facebook fans—that frequently causes lines out the door at their Portland locations. In fact, they’ve done so well building their brand, they’ve recently expanded to Los Angeles, CA.

Moral of the story? If you want to successfully brand yourself on social media, keep it consistent.

2. Create share-worthy content
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A big part of success in social media is spreading the word about your brand to new people. And the way to do that? Create share-worthy content.

Content is the foundation of social media. In fact, there’s a whole industry built around it: content marketing.

When it comes to social media branding, you want to establish yourself as a go-to resource for awesome content in whatever your industry you’re in. Your content is the foundation of your social media success, and it must inspire people to click, engage and share.

Dunkin’ Donuts saw an opportunity to engage their audience and build their brand on social media when Facebook launched their Live feature. On Valentine’s Day 2016, Dunkin’ broadcast their first live-stream on Facebook Live, where they took their audience behind the scenes at their test kitchen and gave them an inside peek at the construction of a ginormous wedding cake made of donuts. This holiday-themed video was a huge success for Dunkin’—over 46,000 live viewers.

Seeing the opportunity to become the go-to donut brand for fun, seasonal video content, Dunkin’ has continued to create tons of viral social media videos that their audience goes crazy for. Just check out their recent Dancing Pumpkin Man, which currently has over 2.3 million views and almost 62,000 shares.

Let’s also take a look at a lesser-known (but no less successful) brand. The Lighter Side of Real Estate is a (you guessed it) real estate website targeted towards agents that offers helpful resources, articles, and marketing services. Their entire brand is built around content—especially funny content.

They’ve done an incredible job of creating content like hilarious memes and GIFs that get their audience clicking that “Share” button. They keep their design simple (a lot of times, they just slap their logo on a meme and call it a day), but it works.

And the result of all this shareworthy content? Their audience exploded. The Lighter Side of Real Estate currently has 339.6K Facebook fans. That’s pretty impressive for a niche site targeted towards real estate professionals!

The key to successful, recognizable social media branding is to create content that will inspire your audience to share and engage. Figure out what content is going to connect best with your particular audience, publish it on the regular and watch those shares come pouring in.

Whether you decide to focus on video content or memes, GIFs or written posts, you need to make sure you’re branding yourself as a company who creates killer content.

3. Add ah-mazing images
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Speaking of content, you can’t talk about social media branding without talking about images. In fact, some platforms—like Instagram and Pinterest—are based entirely around pictures.

Images boost engagement like crazy. Facebook posts with images get 2.3x more engagement, and tweets with images receive 150% more retweets than tweets without. If your images aren’t a priority in your social media branding strategy, you’re going to fall flat.

When creating brand imagery for social media, be true to your self, grab your audience’s attention and look fantastic.

Now, keep in mind, your images don’t have to just be based around your product, your service or yourself (if you’re a personal brand). As long as you’re on-brand, they’re a go.

Just look at Lorna Jane, a popular women’s athletic brand. Instead of building their social media images strictly around their products (I mean, how many sports bra photos can a person look at?!), they wisely decided to focus their images on the kind of fun, active lifestyle Lorna Jane inspires.

A great example of a smaller brand (also in the fitness space!) doing awesome things with branding their social media images is CycleHouseLA. This Los Angeles-based spin studio has a healthy social media following they engage by sharing inspirational images meant to get people off the couch and onto their workout… preferably at their nearest CycleHouse studio.

No one does social media inspiration than marketing expert Gary Vaynerchuk. Via @garyvee

Their mix of real-life students, branded inspirational quotes, and shots of their studio and workout classes make for an inspiring mix that sets them apart from the million other cycling studios in LA.

Are you trying to inspire your audience? Try creating quote images to get them inspired (just make sure you add your logo and brand color palette so you also inspire some brand recognition in the process).

I mean, could you say no to that cone? Yea, we didn’t think so. Via @saltandstraw

Are you trying to get them to drool over your brand’s newest food product? Then take some drool-worthy product shots that make your treats look even more to-die-for than they already are.

Bottom line: social media is an image-heavy place, and so in order to be successful in social media branding, you’ll need killer images.

Figure out what killer images means to your brand, and then deliver on image-centric platforms.

4. Be social
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Our last tip is this: it’s called social media for a reason. If you want to find success with social media branding, you need to actually be social. When one of your followers tweets at you, tweet back! When someone leaves a question on your Facebook page, answer it! If someone comments on your Instagram post, comment right back!

Social media is a conversation, so it needs to go both ways. Build your brand on social media around being social and engaging with your fans. The more you engage, the more engaged they’ll be!

Get out there and get branding
—

Well folks, it’s official, you know have everything you need to win the social media branding game. So what are you waiting for?

Need to kick-start your social media branding? Our designers can help you take your Facebook or Twitter profile design to the next level.

]]>https://99designs.ie/blog/tips/social-media-branding/feed/0The 6 elements of designhttps://99designs.ie/blog/tips/elements-of-design/
https://99designs.ie/blog/tips/elements-of-design/#commentsMon, 11 Sep 2017 21:52:17 +0000https://blog.99cluster.com/blog/?p=163456Good design can sometimes seem magical, like the designer simply stumbled onto a great combination of components that both engage and enlighten the viewer. In actuality, graphic designers use a set of tools, known as the elements of design, to build and hone that perfect design. Remember that every single piece of design is trying…

]]>Good design can sometimes seem magical, like the designer simply stumbled onto a great combination of components that both engage and enlighten the viewer. In actuality, graphic designers use a set of tools, known as the elements of design, to build and hone that perfect design.

Remember that every single piece of design is trying to communicate a message. Design can tell us which emails are unread in our inbox, which brand of socks to buy, or even to be wary of falling rocks. The elements of design are tools a designer uses to craft meaning and bring clarity to a muddled mess of ideas.

This guide will give you an overview of seven basic elements of design that will make sure your design is as powerful as it can be.

The 6 elements of design
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Line

Lines enclose and contain the parts of a design by creating outlines. They can be smooth, rough, continuous, broken, thick or thin.

Lines also send subliminal messages. A diagonal line, for example, has kinetic energy and movement, while a straight line is more ordered and clean.

Lines can be used to emphasize, setting particular information off in a busy composition and drawing the eye to a particular area. They can be formed into shapes or frames (more on both of those a bit further down). The eye will also see lines in other places—think buildings, branches of a tree, a horizon, or a set of train tracks—that offer a natural edge or borders.

Color

These beautiful and evocative illustrations are made more effective by great color choices. Via netralica and chocoboracer

Often designs are undone by sloppy, careless or inappropriate color choices. Color is incredibly important and should never be an afterthought. Even a design set entirely in grayscale needs to be balanced and contrasted appropriately.

In addition to hue (red versus blue), consider the saturation and brightness (or “value”) of each color. Learn the basics of color theory to be sure a composition has the right mood, temperature and tone. Finally, consider what color space (CMYK or RGB) is best for the printer or screen where the design will be seen.

Shape

The diamond shapes in this website design draw the eye toward different pieces of information making it easier for the viewer to digest and navigate. Via arosto.

While our kindergarten teachers all hope we know what a shape is, for our purposes, a shape is any enclosed space defined by lines or in contrast to its surroundings. They can be geometric (squares, ellipses, triangles, etc) or organic (a speech bubble, a blob, those little spiky things that pop on the screen when Batman punches someone).

Other components of a composition, like blocks of text, are also shapes. A designer progresses by leaps and bounds once she sees everything in her design as shapes that need to be ordered and sized based on an invisible grid.

Texture

This design by bomba really pops of the page because of the excellent vintage textures that make it seem chromed and shiny.

Texture is everywhere as we navigate the world around us by both sight and touch. While we can’t feel them on websites and printed pages, textures from the outside world can be brought into a composition to give it life.

Want to imply softness, comfort, and coziness? There’s no quicker way than a cotton textile background. On the other hand, if you’re selling building supplies, you’d probably lean toward cement, stone, and brick, with grittier textured text.

More than with any other element, textures serve as a nod to our natural environment.

Framing

Frames can be subtle but once you train your eyes to look for them, they’ll start showing up everywhere.

Frames organize information and create hierarchy for the eye and highlight the most important information for the viewer. They can be pretty and decorative or basic and utilitarian. Frames also help define shapes in the blank white space of a page.

Type

Bold, stylized type creates a memorable design for a bike shop that works equally well with or without the logotype. Via -G-

Typography is an important element of design because it literally conveys the message you want to communicate. But type can also be more than words: if used in an intentional way, type can also be a striking visual element or a shape, as well as provide structure between the content and the visuals.

Time to experiment!
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Graphic designers use most or all of these elements of design while being guided by a set of principles, known as the principles of design. If the principles of design are the instructions, the elements are the tools.

The best way to master these elements is to experiment. Once you see that something as simple as making a slight adjustment to the color scheme or adding a shape can be the a-ha! moment that elevates your design, you’ll be on your way to crafting more meaningful and effective compositions.

Which element of design do you think is the most difficult to master? Let us know in the comments!

]]>https://99designs.ie/blog/tips/elements-of-design/feed/3Art by computers: how artificial intelligence will shape the future of designhttps://99designs.ie/blog/trends/artificial-intelligence/
https://99designs.ie/blog/trends/artificial-intelligence/#respondFri, 08 Sep 2017 10:00:00 +0000https://blog.99cluster.com/blog/?p=163459Ever since the appearance of 2001: A Space Odyssey’s HAL, the idea of computers that could think for themselves has been a little disconcerting for most of us. But this is a new time. Artificial intelligence (AI) is here, and no killer androids are in sight (yet). Instead, we’ve got an all new, more mundane, yet…

Ever since the appearance of 2001: A Space Odyssey’s HAL, the idea of computers that could think for themselves has been a little disconcerting for most of us. But this is a new time. Artificial intelligence (AI) is here, and no killer androids are in sight (yet). Instead, we’ve got an all new, more mundane, yet equally scary set of fears: losing our jobs to computers and robots.

The reality of artificial intelligence for the design industry (which has always been at the forefront of progress by embracing and adopting new technologies) is that it might not be so much a danger to be feared, but a catalyst for a paradigm shift. Change is coming whether we want it or not, so the best strategy may be to embrace these new tools and hang on for the ride.

Automation of jobs
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But what about artificial intelligence and the job market? I know what you’re thinking: “Stop waxing philosophical and tell me if my job is going to disappear!” The truth is that even experts aren’t sure about this, but there are a few things we do know.

Character designs by [Gin]

A recent estimate thinks that about 38 percent of the current job market will be at risk due to automation by the 2030s. Water, sewer and waste management jobs are at the top of the list, followed by transportation and storage jobs, and then manufacturing jobs. Retail workers are right behind them, along with administrative jobs. Even some kinds of legal and medical jobs—like those that involve routine parsing of records and forms—have also joined the endangered job species list.

Automation in the design industry
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What about designers, then? So far, they appear to be at relatively low risk. A designer’s job typically includes creating and processing unstructured information. And because they need to be able to relate to others, designers are expected to have not only creative skills but social skills.

Even so, Fast Co. Design points out that much of design is formulaic enough to feed to a computer. It’s not special sauce or pixie dust that creates appealing websites, but design principles such as the golden ratio, Fibonacci’s spiral, the rule of three and sacred geometry. If human designers can apply those principles, so can computers.

There are many rote tasks designers perform, such as working with grids and pre-set rules across devices, that could easily be automated. But freeing up time by taking these tasks out of the hands of designers could also be a win. No one misses physically going to the library for research and sifting through paper books and articles, do they?

The Grid, a website builder that uses AI to generate sites without the input of a designer, has been touted both as a labor-saving device for designers and a hostile takeover of the design profession. If apps like The Grid are used by design studios, the basics of web design could be automated based on client parameters and goals. Then, designers could take over for fine tuning and UX tasks.

Tools like Autodesk Dreamcatcher are even more impressive. By applying algorithms to any set of parameters, the app produces numerous iterations of a design, allowing designers to choose the best one, or top few for recombination.

As technology analyst Rob Girling points out, most modern design jobs are defined by social and creative intelligence, skills that demand creative problem-solving, empathy, negotiation, persuasion and problem framing.

Artificial intelligence may affect the workforce by challenging more non-designers to develop their social and creative intelligence in order to stay employable. Designers may need to do more to differentiate themselves and will probably seek out more niche-specific and deeply skilled specializations or gain more broad-based skills that transfer to many roles.

How designers can work with artificial intelligence
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The designers of the near future will be even more creative, acting as curators assisted by technology. This means that they will provide high-level direction to their AI partners, including goals, constraints and the specific problems that need to be solved. Theoretically, this would free up their time for more creative tasks.

While artificial intelligence evolves, it will especially require the curator’s collaboration and feedback in order to grow and learn. Designers will also have the opportunity to structure algorithms in service to their own creative work—an awesome chance to change the face of the profession forever.

In the end, AI will enable designers to create forms that would be impossible for a lone human to construct. It will make their work better by suggesting incremental improvements based on a profound understanding of their inspirations and influences and the ability to A/B test ad nauseam. Artificial intelligence will be an indispensable tool.

Generative technologies along with VR/AR have already changed other industries such as architecture and video game design in significant ways—but not ways that have meant job loss for creatives. Instead, a new era of technologically-enhanced creativity has begun.

The strange creations of AI designers
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Meanwhile, even though it seems clear that artificial intelligence isn’t close to taking over design jobs, that’s not stopping data scientists from trying out AI designers on creative tasks. The result is a sometimes painful, sometimes outright goofy world.

This ad for clorets created by an AI can leap tall doghouses in a single bound. Via YouTube.

In one case, a Japanese creative director at an ad agency was pitted against an AI in a contest to create a better ad for Clorets (really). While the human’s ad won the popular vote by a thin margin (54 percent), the industry vote went to the AI’s ad.

These one-of-a-kind Nutella labels were created by an algorithm. Via YouTube.

Still, the artistry of AI isn’t always on point. An AI wrote a bizarre short sci-fi film that went on to be even weirder by starring David Hasselhoff. Watch it if you dare. Or if your place needs a new coat of paint, why not try one of the shades created by an AI? Sting Gray isn’t bad, but stay away from Farty Red, Bull Cream and Rose Colon.

Beyond the weird and the whaaaat?, AI designers have created art that is truly beautiful—sometimes well enough to fool humans. Google Deep Dream generates stunning color-saturated images that help it learn. In fact, now that they’re going up for auction, Google’s AI might be making more money from its art than many a struggling artist.

The future is an opportunity
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We’ve already seen the economy change so much, so it’s important to examine our work and identify parts that might be automated by up and coming technologies. But don’t worry about those aspects of it. Instead, focus on adding value through creativity, adaptation to the unexpected and human insight.

Seen in this light, artificial intelligence is a positive catalyst for the future of design—and I really think it will be. The technology is ours to mine and refine, just like the HAL computer was for its users. Before he turned to life of murderous cybercrime, HAL was the reason his crew was able to make the voyage into the deep reaches of the solar system, and his failure was technically his programmers’ too.

Likewise, now is not the time for designers to shy away from their tradition of embracing new technology. Just as we always have, we should see it as a tool that will make our work better, freeing us up by eliminating tedious tasks, assisting us toward one-of-a-kind creative pieces that are high-concept and emotional. As long as we can learn to adapt to and work with new technology, it can only help us retain our usefulness in any field.